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Wales bench captain for Italian opener (team sheet)

Wales’ regular captain Sam Warburton will start from the bench durining this weekend’s Six Nations opener against Italy with veteran lock Alun Wyn Jones leading the team.

Other than Warburtons benching, the team looks pretty settled with veterans Mike Phillips, Jamie Robert, Luke Charteris and Adam Jones adding much stability and leadership.

“We are looking for a good start, we started slowly last year and know we need to be ready from the off, Italy started last year’s tournament with a win over France so they will be ready on Saturday and we need to start well and build confidence and momentum. It’s a strong, experienced side, but there was a lot of discussion about the selection which is a great position to be in as a coach.” said Wales coach Warren Gatland.

“We’ve almost everyone fit for selection which is pretty rare. Alun-Wyn will lead the side with Sam starting on the bench and he has come through training well,” added Gatland.